Minecraft on Xbox 360

At launch, Minecraft on Xbox 360 was based on an earlier version of Minecraft for PC (content included reflected PC content through Beta 1.6). Six patches have been released so far, including four major ones. Although both the PC and Xbox 360 versions of the game share many obvious similarities, there also are some notable differences between the two editions.

The chief difference that sets the console version apart from the PC one is the inclusion of split screen cooperative play (local Survival Multiplayer). Note that split screen co-op is only available if Minecraft Xbox 360 is played on an HDTV, and you may see some performance issues when it is enabled and in use (including poorer draw distance).

The patch releases announced so far are tracked on the Xbox 360 Updates page of this wiki. Keep in mind that the XBLA version of Minecraft is "behind" the development of the PC version. Consequently, there are many features of the PC version still missing on Xbox, including The End (dimension) and the Ender Dragon (mob).

Minecraft Xbox 360 vs PC Differences

Splitscreen Multiplayer. The Xbox 360 version allows for multiple players on one screen (just hook up an additional controller and press "Start" to join a game). This mode is available only for 360s outputting to an HDTV at the appropriate resolutions (standard-definition televisions will not be able to use split screen mode). Note that if players sign in via guest accounts, their items and character states will not be saved. To save, make sure other players sign in with actual Xbox profiles. The limitation here is that they cannot go online unless they are Gold accounts. To play split-screen with non-Gold accounts, turn off the "Online" option when starting your game.

Online Multiplayer. The Xbox version's multiplayer setup is simplified -- no need for server creation, etc. Just invite up to eight friends Via Disk Or 12 Friends Via Arcade to your map and open your world up to others to visit.

Leaderboards. The Xbox 360 version features leaderboards and standard Xbox achievements.

To view a full list of differences, compare release notes for patches and releases that followed in the Patches & Releases section. There are too many differences to name every single minor change. Additionally, you should expect to see additional updates in the future, which Notch has noted should be available for free.